Jewelry branding: go for gold with our ultimate guide

Whether you’re curating fine gemstones and metals or stranding together decorative costume baubles, the jewelry industry is all about beautiful presentation and intricate details. So, it comes as no surprise that branding is an integral part of the jewelry industry, and yours deserves the finest. We explore key branding strategies that jewelry designers, emerging artists and marketing professionals can use to make jewelry branding the best it can be.
Great branding can take time, but it’s 100% worth it. Regardless of whether your brand centers around luxurious fine jewelry or affordable lower-end pieces, every jewelry brand has a voice and a purpose in the marketplace. It’s just a matter of finding your own sparkle—once you find it, you’re golden.
Jewelry is estimated to be a 230 billion dollar industry. While this is great news for your potential profits, it also means that the business is highly competitive. With an outstanding brand strategy, you can set yourself apart from the rest.
So the first step to boosting your jewelry branding mojo is defining who you are as a company. Everything you do as a jeweler should always come back to how your brand is defined. First, ask yourself the question: Who are you as a jeweler and what are your beliefs?
Once you’ve answered this question, you should be able to develop a mission statement, which will help actively mold your branding decisions. For example, fine jeweler Cartier states, “Since 1847, the Cartier Maison has embodied a tradition of excellence.” This is an accurate and reliable statement, which encapsulates what the Cartier brand is all about.
Next, take time to think about your target market. Are you centered upon affordable costume jewelry branding that your average person can enjoy? Or are you a luxury label? Do you make versatile, appealing engagement rings that provide the perfect amount of bling at a low price point? Or, is your thing sustainability?
Your niche and identity impact your branding and how you interact with your customers.
About those customers—you must get to know them and understand their desires in order to become relatable as a brand. A huge perk to jewelry is that it can appeal to many ages, gender identities and walks of life. You shouldn’t have one target customer. Instead, it should be a targeted customer state of mind or a targeted customer lifestyle.
Take, for instance, the Kat Cadegan logo below. It offers a strong example of appealing to the customer’s state of mind and lifestyle, rather than the customer as a person. The faded colors and feather graphics appeal to the free-spirited customer that the sustainable, boho jewelry brand wants to reach.
In order to completely define your brand, you’ll also need to establish and understand your brand’s advantage in the customers’ eyes. Think of it this way—what sets you apart from the competition and why should the customer choose you?
In the highly competitive world of jewelry design, it’ll help to have something that sets you apart, even if it’s just a little karat of a difference. Is your jewelry customizable in color, material or shape? Have you mastered the art of statement pieces? Are you able to engrave your pieces? Do you utilize unique natural materials from unexpected sources? No matter what it is that sets you apart, embracing and owning your brand advantage will help you establish and maintain longevity.
Look at the success of BaubleBar, a jewelry brand that generated nearly $50 million in revenue during its first 6 years. How’d they do it? BaubleBar identified a gap in the market and focused on the creation of affordable fashion-statement jewelry priced between cheap costume and high-end fine jewelry.
The company offers a diverse and extensive product range with a mix of ready-to-wear pieces and customizable trinkets, giving their customers the power to browse many items and personalize their choices. BaubleBar knows what it’s doing and does it well. That’s what great branding is all about: defining every little detail.
Now it’s time to talk about brand identity. The visual perception of your brand will influence its creation and execution, so it’s integral to put thought and care into every step of the way.
Begin with the logo. It’s the best way to tell someone about your jewelry before they’ve even worn it or seen it. Let the logo reflect who you are and what you’re all about, whether you’re a modern jewelry maven, a detail-oriented metalworker or somewhere in between.
Then, think about all of the places where your logo can go. This includes storefront signage, business cards, product packaging and more. With the right logo design, you’ll make a stunning first impression right from the start.
Once you have your logo, you can incorporate it into your jewelry brand guidelines, along with your standards for the color palette, packaging, typography and imagery.
The color palette is a crucial part of your brand identity, and it can appear in all of your branding materials, including your website and your social media channel. Think of color as a source of personality and purpose. With this in mind, you can use your color palette as a means of bringing your brand identity to life.
Whether you’re bold and bright or sophisticated and subdued, a color palette should be uniquely you. Remember how Tiffany & Co. built an entire brand around a single color which became so iconic that it was worthy of giving Tiffany Blue® a registered trademark? It’s all about choosing the right shade of you, whatever that may be.
Given the delicate nature of the item you’re selling, jewelry packaging is of the utmost importance in both design and functionality. Packaging not only gives your jewelry a safe and protective home, but it’s also an opportunity to make an impression about your brand.
When designing packaging for jewelry, many factors can come into play. Focus on the shape of the container, the placement of the logo and the display of the item itself. Be yourself; a handmade, boho-chic Etsy jewelry maker’s packaging should be distinctly different from a splurge-worthy luxury brand like Rolex.
Packaging has many layers. Do you want to wrap your gift box in branded tissue paper and seal it with a sticker? How about a ribbon? Are you including a gift or thank you card? What about a promo voucher for their next spend?
Let the packaging be an honest representation of your brand.  This is your time to let your product shine.
It doesn’t matter if your brand sells bohemian baubles or the most sought-after fine gems: carefully curated typography will serve as an additional boost to the brand.
Consider the character of your brand and think about which fonts will emphasize this the most. Are you a minimalist sans serif font, or more of a quirky script? The choice is important, and the choice is yours.
From your e-commerce website or app to your social media presence, imagery is a defining factor of your brand’s visual presence. Remember that there are many ways to photograph jewelry, and it can be good to diversify your selections. On-model imagery helps the customer understand the scale of the piece and how to wear it, while off-model imagery helps the little details shine.
Italian jeweler Vita Fede uses imagery to its advantage. Vita Fede’s mix of on- and off-model photography showcases the beauty and simplicity of their products.
Additionally, they take an artistic approach by utilizing sculptures in product photos, emphasizing the sophistication of their brand and the customer they’re trying to reach.
Likewise, Floridian jewelry designer Martha Calvo offers imagery that captures the pure essence of the brand: fun, fresh and tropical. The sunny, beach-inspired imagery showcases not only the jewelry itself, but what the brand represents.
Once you’ve defined your brand and established a brand identity, it’s time to take things one step further both in-person and virtually. Now you’re ready to think about designing a stunning website, offering a one-of-a-kind shopping experience and cultivating your social media presence.
Developing an interactive website will kickstart how your jewelry brand will connect with existing and future customers. In the world of jewelry and e-commerce in general, your website is not only a sales tool, but a collective representation of your brand.
With an eye-catching design, well-curated imagery and a comprehensive, explanatory “about us” section, a website can be your brand’s greatest asset.
NYC-based Aurate made headlines through a collaboration with Halston, but the true root of this brand is a perfectly designed website, which features spot-on branding and a vocal commitment to sustainability.
“We like our conscience clear and our diamonds clearer. Jewelry isn’t the most ethical industry and we are here to change that,” Aurate explains beautifully. They accompany their passion for ethically sourced diamonds with clear imagery and an easy-to-use website navigation setup, which includes a top menu and hidden subcategories. It’s a completely branded experience all in the beauty of a single digital space.
While plenty of jewelry can be purchased online, there’s something to be said about the charm of a distinct brick-and-mortar and experience. This is your chance to fully surround your customer with every inch of your brand.
French luxury fashion house Chanel has mastered the art of immersing its customers in a luxurious, branded experience—not only through beautiful storefronts—but also through unique events. In Hong Kong, Chanel created an unforgettable event where they transformed PMQ into Place Vendôme, this being the location in which Coco Chanel’s high jewelry atelier began. Even 5,000 miles away from Paris, Hong Kong-based customers were fully immersed in gorgeous, iconic French jewelry complemented by Parisian-inspired scenery.
Immersive experiences aren’t just for high-end brands. Look to Kendra Scott for its beautiful execution of a uniquely branded store that provides a memorable experience at a reasonable price point. Semi-precious druzy stones give the brand its edge—and since no two pieces are exactly alike—this sparked a desire to let Kendra Scott’s customers connect through creating their own customized jewelry.
Now in business for over two decades, the eponymous jewelry company has generated $360 million in sales, and Kendra Scott continues to deliver the goods. At the Kendra Scott Color Bar, customers can walk up to the bar (or visit the bar on their website) and build their own custom jewelry from scratch. Additionally, the color bar can be booked for private parties, offering a fun destination for birthday hangouts with friends or memorable moments for bridal parties.
In the jewelry business, social media is your friend. In order to be a successful brand, connecting with your customers is 100% necessary. Through social media, customers and brands can develop a relationship that feels personal—even intimate at times—if approached strategically.
Outlets like Instagram, TikTok and Facebook provide opportunities for you to provide engaging content that’s quick, snackable and relatable. And through influencer collaborations, you can get the word out to a larger audience.
Thanks to the easily wearable nature of jewelry, partnering with a celebrity influencer is an ideal way to stand out. La Manso’s quirky, handmade rings went viral thanks to stars like Bella Hadid and Dua Lipa sharing their love of the brand. The casual vibes of the influencers support the lighthearted “you may have worn this in middle school” mood that the brand evokes. After millions of TikTok views, Barcelona-based La Manso jetted off to the USA for an NYC pop-up shop, bringing its social media success to life in a fun, relatable and tangible setting.
When showcasing your jewelry on social media, remember to aim for cohesive, consistent imagery that lets the jewelry speak for itself. It should reflect your brand’s essence while still feeling effortless; make sure to not look like you’re trying too hard. And when it comes to captions, less is more—always. Look to Laura Lombardi, Sandra Alexandra and TOHUM for social media success stories.
We’ve reviewed key branding strategies which will help your jewelry brand reach a new level of sparkle. Give your jewelry lasting luster through defining your brand, developing a brand identity and creating branded experiences.
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Δ
Our newsletter is for everyone who loves design! Let us know if you’re a freelance designer (or not) so we can share the most relevant content for you.
By completing this form, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Google Terms of Service apply.
Designers, check out these contests so you can start building your career.
Our newsletter is for everyone who loves design! Let us know if you’re a freelance designer (or not) so we can share the most relevant content for you.
By completing this form, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Google Terms of Service apply.
Our newsletter is for everyone who loves design! Let us know if you’re a freelance designer (or not) so we can share the most relevant content for you.
By completing this form, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Google Terms of Service apply.

source